On our trip to Pisa, we spent a couple hours at the famous tower, taking pictures and wandering around. There's not a ton to do in Pisa besides look at the leaning structure, but it was great to go and see a famous structure that I've only seen in pictures.
After Pisa, we bused to Lucca to have lunch and take a tour of the city. It was beautiful! The streets were smaller and quieter, and like many other Italian cities, they had a beautiful church and quaint squares with shops and cafes. Lucca is interesting because it is surrounded by a wall that was originally built to keep the city safe from the Medici family when they were in power. Today, you can walk or ride bikes around the walls on a two mile path.
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| View of Lucca from the top of the tower |
My favorite part of this weekend was our trip to Fiesole! The town is only about fifteen minutes outside of Florence, but it is up in the hills and far from the business of the city. The air was crisper and fresh, and everything was so lush and green from all the rain we've been having. Today, it's known as the East Hamptons of Florence. The villas there cost millions of dollars, and many wealthy families from Florence will spend the summer in homes there to escape the humidity and heavy air of the city. Many celebrities, such as Sting, own homes in the area.
We first went on a tour of a museum that displayed the remains of Etruscans, who lived in the area before the Romans conquered them in 3000 BC. They don't know much about the Etruscans, besides what they've uncovered about their burial ceremonies. Their language is almost impossible to decipher, and much of it still remains a mystery.
After the Roman empire fell, a group call the Longobards took over the region. They were barbaric, and Fiesole became a sort of "no mans land" for many years.
After learning a quick overview of the history, we saw an old Roman theatre that once was able to fit 3,000 people. Peasants and women sat at the top, while royalty and the rich sat near the bottom. The structure was built from the beginning decades of the first century, and finished in the second. Famous play writes such as Sophocles would have visited the theatre.
Next, we moved on to the ruins of the Roman's old temple and bathing grounds. Although the basic outline remains, much of it is covered in moss and is overgrown with grass. It was interesting to be able to walk around all of them though, and climb stairs that have been there for so many years.
After hiking up a steep hill, we came to an overlook that gave a wonderful view of Florence below us.
We continued up a hill to visit a monastery. It was amazing how small all of the rooms were!
The day concluded with a seven course brunch provided by our program in the basement of a great restaurant. We had everything from cheese plates, to lasagna, to egg dishes, and cheese cake. Needless to say, everyone was stuffed but happy!
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